Sacrificial paste for fabrication of ceramic materials by layer-by-layer method

The aim of the work was to develop a sacrificial paste suitable for securing channels during shaping of ceramic materials with internal structures via combination of tape casting and soft lithography. Poly(ethylene glycol) methyl ether and polyethylene glycols with different molecular weight were selected as a main components of a sacrificial paste due to their compatibility to UV curable dispersion. The research shows that sacrificial paste should be characterized by proper melting point. This goal was achieved by using a composition of PEG600 with 15wt.%PEG20000 and 10wt.% carbon. The invented sacrificial paste solidify beyond 27°C (melting point). After heating up to 80°C the viscosity of paste is low enough and easily fills the channels with diameter of 150-300uni. What is more, the operational time during free cooling from 80°C to solidification is around 8 minutes what gives enough time for application. Carbon was added as a modifier of rheological properties and as a black dye that helps in visual evaluation of a degree of filling channel. The first test proved that proposed method of preparation of ceramic samples with application of invented sacrificial paste is reliable and can be practically applied.